* Dorie Rios, Sergeant at Arms - Firekeepers Tribal Council

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
I gotta get this paper so I can wrap these
What am I gonna get too, gentlemen.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
I hope I don't fuck get nobody on his long
long lists.

Speaker 1 (00:15):
I don't forget anybody. We have a long long list
of guests here. That's Jennifer Hudson singing that song, and.

Speaker 3 (00:21):
We saved our special guest for last story. Rios is
the tribal.

Speaker 1 (00:24):
Consul sergeant at arms, and we're here at fire Keepers
Casino with Jim Wise as our co host, and we
say very very happy holidays to you. And also it
seems to me, missus Rios, that December nineteenth is a
certain holiday for you and everybody here on the property
and extended beyond it as well.

Speaker 4 (00:45):
Yes it is, and good morning, and thank you for
having me. This is a great day for Notawa's sitting
here on band of the paddle out of meat.

Speaker 1 (00:53):
Would you tell everybody what the significance of December nineteenth
is and how many years it's been significant.

Speaker 4 (01:00):
Today we are celebrating the thirtieth anniversary of federal recognition
for the tribe.

Speaker 3 (01:07):
Congratulations.

Speaker 1 (01:08):
And when you put that in the sort of scale
of history of Michigan history, for instance, or United States
history tribal history help us understand the significance.

Speaker 4 (01:21):
So, of course, not Awissippi has been around time immemorial.
We have always existed as a tribe, but the federal
government put in a process in place for us to
truly identify that we existed as a tribe. There were
certain criteria we had to meet. This process began more

(01:41):
than thirty years ago. It was an uphill battle, but
together we always stayed together as a community and we
met all the criteria with vary the little resources, and
our people were so determined and never gave up. And
here we are today and we're kicking us out celebration
off with festivities for our tribal members. We have all

(02:04):
kinds of We have a comedic performance, we have musical performance,
we have our cultural performances. It's going to be a
great weekend.

Speaker 3 (02:15):
Jim wise, isn't the comedic performance? Is he?

Speaker 4 (02:20):
Jim's pretty good.

Speaker 5 (02:21):
Not that she hasn't laughed at something I've said at
some point in time over eleven years. You could be
sure of it.

Speaker 3 (02:29):
Yes, Dory Rios.

Speaker 1 (02:32):
The tribal council Sergeant at arms, do you think that
now that there's more awareness in the United States and
in general culture of who this continent was before it
is what it is now, of tribal matters and tribal history.

Speaker 4 (02:51):
I believe it's gotten better, we still have much more
work to do. It all starts with the relationships we
continue to build. Not Aawissippi has a great relation working
relationship with the state, and it's all about that government
to government relationships that we continue to build upon. So,
like I said, it's getting better, but we continue to

(03:12):
have work to do.

Speaker 1 (03:14):
Because I notice now sometimes let's say, at the Academy
awards or at major events, there'll be an announcement or
a recognition at the start of the events about the
history of the property, for instance, on which the event's
taking place.

Speaker 3 (03:29):
Do you like that?

Speaker 4 (03:33):
Yes, as long as those different entities get buy in
from the local tribes where they're located, most tribes are
on board with that. That's gotten a lot better. All
the most of the universities in the state of Michigan,
different corporations have gotten buy in. They've sat down and

(03:53):
had those conversations. Sometimes they're hard conversations, but at least
everyone's making some sort of effort to at least, you know,
sit down at that table and identify at least have
the respect that yes, these are indigenous lands, and do
as we do and take care of them as they
conduct their business throughout the state and throughout the United States.

Speaker 3 (04:16):
Were it not for the.

Speaker 1 (04:17):
Not A not a Sepa band of the Potawatomy, there
would not be a fire Keepers for sixteen years now
of success here. And what do you think the secret
of that is beyond Jim Wise.

Speaker 4 (04:32):
Beyond Jim Wise Wise is a great asset to fire Keepers.
I will let that be known. Just again, building those
great community partnerships we have to operate, you know, near
different governments, having those government to government relationships, hiring key people,

(04:52):
respecting and taking care of our employees. That's always key,
just as our ancestors did before. We welcome those that
you know, came across the shores. Sometimes that didn't always
turn out in our favor, but again, we take care
of community, we take care of land, We respect everyone
around us, and we just hope everyone does the same

(05:12):
for us.

Speaker 1 (05:14):
Our special producer Kanisha Smith is here this morning too, listening.
She says hello and congratulations, and she, like the rest
of us, have learned that you've reinvested heavily into this
property and beyond.

Speaker 3 (05:27):
And I say you're building out front right now.

Speaker 4 (05:29):
In fact, yes, it's so important for us, you know,
to take care of our employees as well as our
tribal members. And we do that through healthcare. That is
most important to keep everyone healthy, to not only show
up to work, but to continue to lead their daily lives.
They have families to go home to. That's so important

(05:51):
for us. And as everyone's experiencing, you know, rising cost
healthcare is that number one cost. So anything we can
do to take care of our community, we will do.

Speaker 1 (06:04):
Thank you very much for that and for spending some
precious moments with us today on December Megwitch.

Speaker 3 (06:11):
To you, Megwitch, there we go. Thank you. I appreciate
being able to say that correctly. All the best.

Speaker 1 (06:19):
That's story Rios the Tribal Council Sergeant at arms, and
I like she has a beautiful laugh, doesn't she?

Speaker 5 (06:24):
She does. And Tribal Council does so much for the operation.
They do so much to take the funds from the
casino to reinvest in the tribal members. So whether it's
health as story mentioned, or housing or their education, you know,
tribal members can go off to college and not pay
a cent, and that's such a difficult burden for so

(06:45):
many people. So it's growing kind of the whole tribal person.
And we're thrilled to see that money come back from
the casino to be able to do great things like that.

Speaker 1 (06:56):
Gladys Shields has motored back over to our studio audience
here and the crowd is somewhere under two thousand. Not
sure how far are under two thousand, but they've gathered
here today.

Speaker 2 (07:05):
Ye.

Speaker 1 (07:06):
She rolled away with her walker with cash in her
hand and her fire keeper's Red Hot Rewards card.

Speaker 3 (07:13):
She came back with a slip of paper with sixty
three cents.

Speaker 5 (07:19):
Yes, but she used a Red Hot Rewards card, which
I always like to tell you when I'm on the show.
If people learn nothing from anything else, I say, that
card does nothing to impact your wins and losses. It
just helps you get rewards. So don't be caught in
that old superstition. The card is only your friend.

Speaker 1 (07:36):
She has had four sessions over two days, and she's
over four. She has made Tony. You had an idea
about what do you do when you have a slip
like that with sixty three cents or seventy twenty three cents,
seventy five cents. You were posing an idea. I don't
know if that was after the bell's too hard.

Speaker 3 (07:52):
Yes, yeah, I don't know.

Speaker 2 (07:53):
I just thought it would be a cheap marketing gimmick
that you could say, bring your slips, regardless of what
casino it's for, bring them to fire keepers, and we
will accept those slips for whatever the nominal amount it is,
and that will be free play for the machines.

Speaker 5 (08:08):
Well, what we do do with those change slips? I
will tell you. So, if you put in a ticket
to get your money out, and it's eighty two dollars,
let's say have fifty three cents, we will give you
the fifty three cents that you have to go to
the cage to pick up, or we just say, hey,
we will donate that to local charities. And so there
are four of which, for example, the Food Bank is

(08:30):
one of them of South Michigan. There's also the VA
of Battle Creek. And people take that money, they can
pick which charity they want that change to go to,
and trust me, that is twelve centses and forty two censes.
They build up over a month.

Speaker 3 (08:45):
I've always wondered what happened to that?

Speaker 5 (08:47):
All that money We give to four or five local
charities every month. Sweet the Haven of Rest is another
place that we give funds to and helps them stay alive.

Speaker 1 (08:57):
Secrets of fire Keepers. And when we get back Tony,
it's first gift a lot of people obviously here I
am at Dusty Cellar doing some holiday shopping and looking
for there he is, Matt Rhodes. Can you give us
an update on the season now that I was lucky
enough to run into you?

Speaker 6 (09:11):
Welcome Michael Patrick, and yes, we're fully stocked for the
season with a ton of wine, beer, especially food and
of course get baskets.

Speaker 1 (09:17):
The options you provide for gift giving choices, I'm not
sure where to turn next.

Speaker 6 (09:21):
Yes, many choices, whether buying for family, friends, or corporate gifts.
We have something for everyone.

Speaker 3 (09:26):
What about gift cards?

Speaker 1 (09:27):
Can I get a Dusties gift card for the retail
and the restaurants too.

Speaker 6 (09:31):
That's the nice thing about our gift cards. They can
redeemed in the cellar for retail purchases, also in the
wine bar for casual fine dining, in the tap room
your neighborhood pub.

Speaker 1 (09:38):
I'm going to get a six for sixty six wine
club gift and some gift cards for some clients, and
then I'm going to stop in the wine bar and
tap room for a drink because I know I'll run
into friends there or meet some new ones. And you
can join me and the six for sixty six Wine
Club at Dusty Cellar. It's on Grand River in Okamus
and online at Dustysellar dot com.

Speaker 6 (09:57):
Cheers Michael Patrick, and happy holidays.

Speaker 1 (10:00):
Have you ever wondered why health insurance costs seem to
keep going up? I was doing some research online and
I stumbled upon some surprising information on Blue Cross Blue
Shield of Michigan's websitemibluedaily dot com slash affordability. I was
surprised to learn that the cost Blue Cross pays for
prescription drugs rose by a staggering fifteen percent last year.

(10:21):
Fifteen percent. That's five times higher than inflation. It's no
wonder healthcare costs or a concern for so many of us.
That's why Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is working
hard to help all of us better understand the factors
driving up healthcare costs and sharing. What they are doing
is a business to address it. Because Blue Cross knows
that healthcare is personal, it needs to work for everyone,

(10:41):
and affordability matters. So I encourage you to take a
minute and check Outmi blue Daily dot com, slash affordability
and get informed.

Speaker 3 (10:50):
You'll be glad you did.

Speaker 1 (10:51):
It's eye opening information that can help everyone better understand
the complexities of the healthcare system and its impact on
your health insurance costs.